Mumbai-Kohlapur Mahalaxmi Express with 700 passengers on board has been stranded since Saturday morning due to continuous rains. The train is held up between Badlapur and Vangani in Maharashtra since 3 am.
Initial reports suggested that around 2000 passengers were stranded but a Central Railways’ officer confirmed that the total number of passengers who boarded the train is 700.
A National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team was deployed to rescue the passengers. As many as 8 flood rescue teams of the Navy including the diving teams are also a part of this operation.
A recent tweet by Central Railways said:
So far, around 500 people have been rescued from the Mahalaxmi Express Train. These passengers have been taken to an open space, around 1.5 km from the site. Here, water, food and medical facilities have been arranged.
Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis has given instructions to the chief secretary to personally monitor the rescue operation at Vangani. For the rescue efforts, 7 Navy teams, 2 Indian Air Force helicopters, 2 military columns and local administration have been deployed.
